Sharp Advice: Memory Loss

We've all forgotten names of faces we know, or stopped to wonder, "Why did I come in here?" or "What was it I wanted?" Can we protect ourselves from memory loss or is it just a problem that comes with age? That's a question Marsha Sharp is asking in this week's Sharp Advice from Texas Tech.

When it comes to studying the brain, Dr. Randolf Schiffer wrote the book, literally. As department chair of neuropsychiatry at the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center, he believes memory loss in our later years is not inevitable.

"Be physically and mentally active, take care of your hart. Do new things with your mind," said Dr. Schiffer.

Schiffer says keeping your mind active doesn't mean watching TV or playing video games card games are not enough. Because if you've played the same games for most of your life it becomes routine. Instead, he says the key is *new* learning, something to stretch your mind. A new hobby, a new skill, or the next level of crossword puzzles. And he says keeping a strong mind is a reflection of living well.

In other words, all the things we do to take care of our heart, like diet and exercise work together to keep the mind healthy too. I may not be coaching basketball anymore, but I want to learn new things, new skills. It all goes back to the importance of exercise and the mind needs that too.